Mountain man Hugh Glass was a legend to his peers, many of them legends themselves. His fame spread to the East, where his story was told in the newspapers of Philadelphia. His legend entered the lore of Native American tribes as well, where it was still being told many decades after his passing. But with the coming of the 20th century, Hugh’s legend faded into obscurity*. John Myers Myers’ book is an excellent attempt to rescue Hugh from the obscurity that he had faded into and restore him to his rightful place among American frontier legends.

The central tale of Hugh’s legend is almost too fantastic to be believed. Attacked and mauled to the point of death by a grizzly bear*, he was left in the wilderness to die by companions who robbed him of his rifle, knife, tomahawk*, flint, and nearly all the tools necessary for survival in the wild. Yet Hugh, though horribly wounded, near death and weaponless, navigated over 300 miles of virgin wilderness back to a frontier outpost. Then, after refitting with weapons and equipment, and before his wounds were fully healed, he set out into the wilderness alone once more to make an incredible solo winter journey to retrieve his precious rifle and take vengeance on* the companions who had robbed and

abandoned him.

Many historians had discounted this story as balderdash*. Myers addresses this in the first section of his book, carefully collecting the remaining evidence, and building a powerful case for the truth of the legend.